Chief compliance officers (CCOs) at registered investment advisers (RIAs) investing in cryptoassets shouldn’t take the recent no-action letter (NAL) from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) allowing them to select state-chartered trust companies (STCs) as qualified custodians lightly. The U.S. regulatory agency’s decision allows RIAs to breathe a sigh of relief they will not […]
FASTER Refunds for EU Withholding Taxes
Operations managers at custodian banks, broker-dealers, and other financial intermediaries, will soon face new administrative challenges and legal liability to secure quicker refunds of excess withholding taxes paid by investors in cross-border transactions for securities issued in the European Union (EU). Among the top concerns mentioned by attendees at the recent Americas Meeting event held […]
Canada’s High Court to Rule on SS&C’s Spoilation Against BNY
“Failure to preserve and produce relevant documents is conduct worthy of censure” wrote Justice William Hourigan of the Court of Appeal for Ontario in the court’s scathing September 2024 ruling against The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation, now called BNY, for breach of contract with SS&C Technologies Canada Corp. He went on to say that […]
Drug Cartels As Foreign Terrorists: AML Spotlight
US President Donald Trump’s decision in January to classify drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations and specially designated global terrorists has put anti-money laundering compliance executives at US financial institutions doing business in Latin America on high alert when it comes to their AML programs. Based on the US Department of State including eight drug […]
SEC’s Short Sale Reporting Rule Comes Up Short
Fund management firms, soon required to report their short sale positions with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, could end up scrambling at the last minute to make the necessary operational changes while praying the regulatory agency agrees with their interpretations of some of its unclear requirements. Buy-side firms appear to be hoping the SEC […]
SS&C: $890M At Stake in Legal Tussle With BNY Mellon
A longstanding dispute over a market data contract with SS&C Technologies, which could cost BNY Mellon up to a whopping US$890 million in damages, highlights the danger of intentionally violating or even misinterpreting a critical element of such an agreement– distribution rights. At issue is whether BNY Mellon had the right to distribute market data […]
SEC Tells Mutual Fund Industry: Lost Accountholders Matter
Compliance directors at US mutual fund transfer agents and US mutual funds will have to follow the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s rules to a T and they will have more administrative work on their hands to inform investors about the perils of escheatment of unclaimed or “lost” accounts, based on the US Securities and […]
SEC’s Oversight of Cryptomarket Prompts Funding Debate
The US Securities and Exchange Commission’s decision to ask Congress to increase its fiscal 2023 budget to more closely monitor the cryptoasset market has resurrected the issue of whether members of one asset class should subsidize oversight of another, but there is no change in sight. The regulatory agency’s crypto-related enforcement actions have soared over […]
What’s a CUSIP Worth? Over US$1B in Class Action Win
If you think you have been fleeced by CUSIP Global Services and others for paying licensing fees for nine-digit alphanumeric identification codes for US securities you might be entitled to a chunk of at least US $1 billion in compensation if a jury decides you’re right. All you must do is be part of an […]
LIBOR: Transition 1-2-3 in 2022
Breakups can be messy and switching from the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) to alternative reference rates (ARRs) will be no exception for trading, operations, fintech, risk and compliance managers in 2022. An ounce of preparing next year can translate into a pound of preventing errors in 2023, caution LIBOR operations and legal experts who […]